Monthly Archives: July 2021

Daily Bible Study

July 22, 2021 Bible Study –Do Not Listen To Those Who Call Evil Good

Today, I am reading and commenting on  Isaiah 5-8.

Usually when I read this passage I am struck by God’s call to Isaiah, and Isaiah’s response.  I feel called and I feel the need to encourage others to feel called.  However, today the message which God gave Isaiah to deliver had more impact on me.  When Isaiah accepted God’s call to deliver God’s message, God gave him this message to deliver:

“‘Be ever hearing, but never understanding;
    be ever seeing, but never perceiving.’

While this was worded as a command being given, it is really more of a prophecy.  The targets of this message are those about whom Isaiah said this in the previous chapter:

Woe to those who call evil good
    and good evil,
who put darkness for light
    and light for darkness,
who put bitter for sweet
    and sweet for bitter.

Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes
    and clever in their own sight.

Once people start calling evil good and good evil they will not understand what God is saying to them, nor perceive what He shows them.  Look around, you will see that our society has become full of people who do this, people who think they are both wise and clever.  They identify a group which people trust to provide information honest information on a subject, then find ways to get that group to start presenting only the information on that subject which supports their goals.  They then don’t understand why people no longer trust the information which comes from that group.

I am not quite sure how to tie this last piece in to what I have written above, but it does tie in.  Isaiah said that God told him, and by inference all those who wish to be faithful to God:

“Do not call conspiracy
    everything this people calls a conspiracy;
do not fear what they fear,
    and do not dread it.”

Instead, we should fear God, and put our trust in Him.  Rather than listening to those who distort the facts in order to advance their political power, consult God’s instruction.  As the prophet tells us, those who refuse to listen to God’s instruction see only distress, darkness, and fearful gloom.  Do not listen to them, look instead to the light of God.

I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Daily Bible Study

July 21, 2021 Bible Study — Which Comes First, Evil Rulers or Evil People?

Today, I am reading and commenting on  Isaiah 1-4.

I am not sure that it ever struck me before, but three of the four kings under whom Isaiah prophesied are considered among the good kings of Judah, among the kings who “did right in the eyes of God.”  Nevertheless, Isaiah prophesied that God found their sacrifices meaningless and their worship assemblies worthless.  It seems to me when I read today’s passage that Isaiah was talking to the people during the reigns of those good kings with what he was saying here.  The message here is that the people of Judah did not do evil because they had evil kings.  They had evil kings because they did evil.

As I read this and think about how it applies today, I am struck by how many people use this passage to attack others rather than doing what it says.  When Isaiah says “Defend the oppressed,” he is not referring to some anonymous group of people.  He didn’t mean stand up for “sex workers”, he meant defend that prostitute whose pimp beats her when she doesn’t bring back enough money.  When he said, “take up the cause of the fatherless”, he meant, be a role model for the boy down the street whose father is not around, for whatever reason.  Of course, and this is the part that is hard for me and strikes me, in all of this he also meant, don’t buy the least expensive brand, if that brand was made by slave labor in some foreign country.

I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Daily Bible Study

July 20, 2021 Bible Study — Do Not Awaken Love Until It Is Ready

Today, I am reading and commenting on  Song of Solomon 1-8.

Many people take the Song of Solomon as an allegory for our relationship with Christ.  That has never worked for me, although I can see it when someone else makes the connections.  Others take it as a tale describing the love of a particular couple.  That seems closer to the motivation for writing it.  However, I think it represents an allegory about what we should seek in a romantic relationship.  In fact, the central lesson I think we should take from it is this “Do not awaken love until is so desires,” or as other translation render it, “Do not awaken love until it is ready.”  The love being referred to here is erotic love, not the love which God commands us to have for our neighbor.  While the love we are commanded to have for our neighbor should be part of what we feel when we awaken erotic love, there is a physical part of the love being talked about here that is not part of that love.  The Song of Solomon makes clear that erotic love is not ready to be awakened until both parties feel it.  These two lovers were irresistibly attracted to one another.

I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Daily Bible Study

July 19, 2021 Bible Study — Consider What God Has Done

Today, I am reading and commenting on  Ecclesiastes 7-12.

I am not sure where I am going to go with today’s blog.  I want to write about a couple of things which the writer says in today’s passage, perhaps as I do some sort of theme will emerge.  The writer tells us that we should be happy in the good times, but remember that the bad times are part of God’s plan as well.  Or, as Job said, God both gives and takes away.

Further on the writer tells us not to be over-righteous or over-wise.  On the other hand we should not be over-wicked or a fool.  That last bit gives us an insight into what he means by “over-righteous” and “over-wise”, because he does not write that we should not be over-foolish, just that we should not be a fool.  We can try to hard to do what is righteous and what is wise.  There comes a point where in an attempt to be righteous we do what is wrong and in an attempt to do what is wise we do what is foolish.  We need to recognize that we will not always get it right, and act anyway.

 

The final thing I want to touch on is a saying which I do not actually know what it means, but which I like to claim explains why I lean towards the political right:

The heart of the wise inclines to the right,
    but the heart of the fool to the left.

Make of that what your will.

1I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Daily Bible Study

July 18, 2021 Bible Study — There Is Nothing New Under The Sun

Today, I am reading and commenting on  Ecclesiastes 1-6.

I always find the Book of Ecclesiastes challenging.  The writer tells us that everything is meaningless, that there is nothing to be gained from striving, and yet strive we must.  However, he also tells us that there is nothing better than to be happy and do good.  Perhaps the most important lesson we can learn from today’s passage is that there is nothing new under the sun: human nature does not change.  People argue that traditional morals have become obsolete because times have changed.  They argue that we should not follow the rules laid down in the Bible because they applied to a different time and place.  However, a study of history reveals that whenever it appears that human nature has changed it is because the majority of people are following the moral code revealed in the Bible.

I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Daily Bible Study

July 17, 2021 Bible Study — Mockers Encourage Fools To Riot

Today, I am reading and commenting on  Proverbs 29-31.

I want to focus on three themes I find in today’s passage.  The first two I believe reflect on what we see going on around us today  And are closely related.   I have chosen four proverbs to illustrate these two themes.  The writer warns us that mockers stir people up and that fools fight and riot when they get angry, but that the wise seek to reduce tensions and bring about calm.

Mockers stir up a city,
    but the wise turn away anger.

Fools give full vent to their rage,
    but the wise bring calm in the end.

The writer also gives us insight into government figures who encourage the mockers and the fools.  Some do so because they have no concern for the destruction such things cause as long as they get their bribes and other benefits of corruption.  In fact, they will encourage such things in order to increase their benefits and power.  Others do so because they have listened to lies so long that they cannot distinguish lies from truth.

By justice a king gives a country stability,
    but those who are greedy for bribes tear it down.

If a ruler listens to lies,
    all his officials become wicked.

I am not going to quote specific proverbs for the final theme: Without discipline, order falls apart.  This has two aspects.  One must live a disciplined life and society must discipline those who do discipline themselves.

I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Daily Bible Study

July 16, 2021 Bible Study — Seek Wisdom, Not The Appearance Of Wisdom

Today, I am reading and commenting on  Proverbs 25-28.

Feeding the hungry and giving water to the thirsty is a basic tenet of Christianity, even if they have done us wrong, especially if they have done us wrong.  Here is how the proverb writer puts that message:

If your enemy is hungry, give him food to eat;
    if he is thirsty, give him water to drink.
 In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head,
    and the Lord will reward you.

Doing good to those who have done us wrong will shame those capable of being shamed, and God will deal with the rest.  Sometimes following the writer’s advice will turn an enemy into a friend.  More importantly, you will not fall to their level and God will reward you.

Yesterday I mentioned some proverbs which appear to contradict other proverbs.  Here is an example of such where one follows right after the other:

Do not answer a fool according to his folly,
    or you yourself will be just like him.
 Answer a fool according to his folly,
    or he will be wise in his own eyes.

I always read this as warning us against getting caught up in an argument with a fool without allowing them to think that we agree with them.  Another interpretation, which does not nullify the one I just gave says that we should not allow fools to define the scope of the debate.  I have seen this second point made by those who warn against allowing those we disagree with to define the words used to debate an issue, because most times the actual issue in dispute is the meaning of those words.

 

I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Daily Bible Study

July 15, 2021 Bible Study — Those Who Fear The Lord Are Humble

Today, I am reading and commenting on  Proverbs 22-24.

I am going to follow the pattern I have used the last couple of days; pulling a few of the proverbs out of today’s passage and commenting on them.  The first two I want to look at have related messages:

Rich and poor have this in common:
    The Lord is the Maker of them all.

Humility is the fear of the Lord;
    its wages are riches and honor and life.

The second one that those who fear the Lord are humble.  Which means that those who are not humble do not fear the Lord.  Elsewhere the proverb writer tells us that fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom,  Taken together these tell us that those who are arrogant are not wise.  This brings me to the first of these two proverbs.  Any claim to greatness I may have comes from the fact that I am made in God’s image.  Yet, everyone can make the same claim.  We should humbly recognize that we are no better, and no worse, than others.  True humility means recognizing this fact: I am neither better than others, nor am I less than others.  We often fail to recognize that considering ourselves inferior to others is a kind of arrogance and as much to be avoided as considering ourselves superior to others.

I was tempted to conclude with the previous paragraph, but I think the lesson from putting these next two proverbs together too important to leave out.

The prudent see danger and take refuge,
    but the simple keep going and pay the penalty.

The sluggard says, “There’s a lion outside!
    I’ll be killed in the public square!”

The first of these proverbs says that we should carefully plan for danger.  The second of these warns against using danger as an excuse to not work.  One could easily see them as contradictory., but, like several other proverbs, they should act as warnings that we can take good ideas too far.  On the one hand, we should be alert to danger and take refuge from it.  On the other hand, we must not use imaginary danger as an excuse to not take get anything done.

I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Daily Bible Study

July 14, 2021 Bible Study — Trust In The Lord, Not In Wealth

Today, I am reading and commenting on  Proverbs 18-21.

Like yesterday, I pulled out a few of these proverbs to focus on, but there are many more which are worth thought.  The first two I want to look at are chapter 19:10-11.

The name of the Lord is a fortified tower;
    the righteous run to it and are safe.

The wealth of the rich is their fortified city;
    they imagine it a wall too high to scale.

It is easy to read these and overlook how they fit together because of the way so many of today’s proverbs are just little tidbits mostly independent of the one before and the one after.  In fact, I had not realized before today that these two go together.  There are numerous proverbs which refer to how the wealth of the rich protects them.  But in this case, the proverb warns rather than declares.  The righteous run to the name of the Lord and ARE SAFE. On the other hand, the rich IMAGINE their wealth a wall too high to scale.  So, we are warned to put our trust in God, not in our wealth, no matter how much of it we have.  I am tempted here to discuss how this applies to things which are going on in society around us, but instead want to focus on making it personal.  I must not allow the wealth I accumulate, however limited it may be, to replace God in my life.

There were some other proverbs in this passage which I had pulled out to possibly write about., But I am going to include just one more:

There is no wisdom, no insight, no plan
    that can succeed against the Lord.

I think this relates to my first paragraph.  No matter how much wealth you accumulate, how wise you are, and how carefully you plan, only by doing as the Lord wills can you succeed.

I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Daily Bible Study

July 13, 2021 Bible Study — There Is A Way Which Appears Right

Today, I am reading and commenting on  Proverbs 14-17.

I could do my entire blog on just a couple of these proverbs, and that is what I am going to do.  I prefer to find themes for the entire passage, or something which links everything together.  However, today I am going to pull just a couple of these proverbs out and talk about them. So, let’s start with this one:

“There is a way that appears to be right,
    but in the end it leads to death.”

This one is perhaps the scariest.  It tells us that there are paths we can follow which seem right, but are not.  However, this reminds me of one of my hobbies, playing Tabletop Roleplaying Games.  In such games one of the players is known as the Gamemaster, whose job it is to tell the story for the rest of the players and act as a referee to ensure that the players are following the rules. From time to time in describing the situation the players must take part in the Gamemaster will say some thing like, “The room APPEARS empty,” or “The chest does not APPEAR trapped.”  Most players have learned to treat such things as a red flag and be on the alert for what comes next.  In much the same way, the proverb writer is warning us to be alert when something feels right,  when our emotions tell us it is the right thing to do.  That is when we must engage our logic and compare it to what God says is right.  Which leads us to the second one of today’s proverbs I want to write about:

“Commit to the Lord whatever you do,
    and he will establish your plans.”

We cannot go far wrong if we seek with all of our actions to bring glory to God and not to ourselves.  If you do whatever you do in order to bring glory to God, with no thought to your own interests, you will avoid the path which the first of these warns against.  in fact, the third of the proverbs which I wanted to write about today expands on this them:

“Better a little with righteousness
    than much gain with injustice.”

Seek righteousness rather than reward and you need not fear that you are on the wrong path.  I started out thinking that what I would write on each of these proverbs would stand alone, but, as you can see, once I started writing I realized that they linked together to teach us.

I want to leave you with a thought from the proverb writer which challenges me every time I come across it:

“Even fools are thought wise if they keep silent,
    and discerning if they hold their tongues.”

As you might guess, keeping silent is not one of my gifts.

I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.